Liebherr Container Cranes Ltd. has supplied the CSX Carolina Connector Intermodal Terminal (CCX) with three automated Rail-Mounted Gantry (RMG) cranes.
The new cranes have been supplied with Liebherr Remote Operator Stations (ROS) for supervised moves and exceptional handling, and with a span of 165ft, a lift height over rail of 50ft and cantilevered outreaches both sides with a safe working load of 40 long tons, the machines are set to work five rail lines and a four-high, five-wide container stack, with a further two rail lines under one of the cantilevers.
Container stacking is now completely automated and in line with terminal safety procedures, picking and placing the rail cars is carried out remotely using supervised moves.
Additionally, crane operations and communications will be anchored by an industrial data centre with redundant servers and high-speed fibre. With this, a 3D measurement system will scan the operational area, continuously creating and updating profiles of container stacks, railcars, and hazards, providing key data for path planning and automatic operation.
At the heart of the cranes automation is a proprietary obstacle generation and monitoring system. This software was developed by a team of Liebherr engineers and based on decades of expertise from the group and has been tailored to precise customer requirements while working with the Tideworks TOS through a customer-specific interface.
Furthermore, for safety, a Yardeye system has been installed. This system monitors traffic in and around the RMG area for safe operation, using both GNSS and RFID technologies to provide accuracy and redundancy, tracking the position and velocity of vehicles in the yard in real-time.
One other advantage of the new cranes is that they allow for emission-free container handling. In line with Liebherr’s long-established simultaneous motion approach to container handling, the new RMGs include three-dimensional stack and train profiling allowing optimal path planning and the most productive and efficient spreader path rather than the traditional approach of square moves. This aims to increase productivity and reduce energy consumption.
On top of this, the company’s eight-rope-reeving system is inherently stable and ensures faster final positioning times whilst the micro-motion controls ensure smooth remove driver operation when placing containers onto trucks.
Liebherr has also recently secured a contract to supply Ship-to-Shore (STS) and Rubber-Tyred Gantry (RTG) cranes to the Port of Duqm in Oman.
The order consisted of four STS and 12 RTG cranes and is set to be delivered to the port in late 2022.
